Tapered wall tube



R. c. HURLEY TAPERED WALL TUBE July 8, 1969 Filed Oct. 17, 1966 I Sheetof2 v FIG.|

" RICHARD c. HURLEY ATTORNEY FIG.

Jul 8, 1969 3o FIG. 5 j z m U W W United States Patent 3,454,235 TAPEREDWALL TUBE Richard C. Hurley, Charlotte, N.C., assignor to FusionRubbermaid Corporation, Statesville, N.C., a corporation of NorthCarolina Filed Oct. 17, 1966, Ser. No. 587,169

Int. Cl. B65h 75/10 U.S. Cl. 242-4621 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREThis invention relates to yarn carriers, and more particularly, to ayarn carrier having a uniform outside diameter about which yarn may bewound, and a tapered bore or passageway defining an inside diameter ofvarying dimensions from one end of the carrier to the other.

In the yarn winding art, generally two types of mandrel assemblies areused in winding yarn onto some type of yarn carrier. Either acylindrical mandrel is used when a cylindrical yarn carrier is beingemployed, or a tapered mandrel is used for cone-shaped yarn carriers.The purpose of this invention is to provide a yarn carrier that willallow the cone or tapered type mandrels to be used for eithercone-shaped yarn carriers or cylindrical type yarn carriers.

Generally speaking then, the invention resides in the provision of ayarn carrier having any desired outside configuration about which yarnmay be wound and a bore or passageway defining an inside configurationhaving varying dimensions from one end of the carrier to the other andbeing adapted to be mounted on a tapered mandrel.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a yarn carrier ofany desired outer configuration which may be received on a mandreladapted to receive yarn cones.

A further object of the invention is to provide a yarn carrier which mayhave any desired outer configuration while the inside of the yarncarrier is adapted to be received on a tapered mandrel assembly.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a means forstandardizing the yarn winding process by providing a means forselectively using either cylindrical or cone-shaped yarn carriers on asingle tapered mandrel assembly.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objectswill appear to those skilled in the art as the description proceedstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of one form of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 22 inFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a bottom plan view of the form of the invention shown inFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 5--5 inFIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is a top plan view of a still further modification of theinvention;

FIGURE 7 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 7-7 inFIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of a still furthermodification of the invention;

FIGURE 9 is a fragmentary view, with parts broken away, illustrating atapered mandrel of the type cOntemplated for use with the yarn carriersof the invention; and

FIGURE 10 is a view similar to FIGURE 9, but illus- 3,454,235 PatentedJuly 8, 1969 trating another tapered mandrel with which the inventionmay be used.

As a means of introduction to the invention, attention is first directedto FIGURES 9 and 10 which show two types of mandrels (M and M) currentlyin use and of conventional three-degree, 51-minute construction forpurposes of illustration. The mandrels M and M include any suitablemeans, not shown, for releasably exerting radial or axial pressureagainst a yarn carrier to hold the yarn carrier on the mandrel and toprevent relative movement between the carrier and the mandrel duringwinding.

Referring to the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 through 3, a yarn carrier10 comprises a cylindrical outer wall 12 made of any suitable material,such as paper or plastic. Inner wall 14 is inwardly spaced from outerwall 12 at one end of the yarn carrier 10 and extends in convergingrelationship with outer wall 12 to a point 11 where inner wall 14 andouter wall 12 merge and form a thickened base portion 13. The uppersurface of inner wall 14 defines an upper annular surface 16 as shown inFIG- URE 1. Longitudinal ribs 18 extend radially between outer wall 12and inner wall 14 above the point 11 in FIG- URES 1 and 2 to providebracing between the two walls.

For the purpose of making the carrier lighter in weight, to provide anengagement area for some types of mandrels, and to prevent chafing ofthe yarn tail, a plurality of longitudinal depressions 22 are spacedaround the inner surface of base portion 13 defining inwardly extendinglongitudinal ribs 20. Ribs 20 engage the mandrel and provide clearancebetween the inner surface of the yarn carrier 10 and the mandrel.

FIGURE 8 shows another embodiment of the inven* tion wherein the yarncarrier is illustrated at 60 and comprises an outer, relatively rigidshell 62, cylindrical in shape, and a resilient inner portion 64 whichmay be of a foam-like material.

The resilient inner portion or insert 64 is bonded or otherwise suitablysecured to the shell 62 and has a tapered inner wall 66 frictionallyengageable with the mandrel M. The insert 64 is preferably internallydimensioned for a snug fit on the mandrel so that it will be compressedbetween its rigid shell 62 and the mandrel when in use. Since the insert64 is foam-like and flexible, it is easy to slide onto the mandrel andalso remove without binding, and therefore no ribs are provided. Insert64 may include also an inner, rigid, cone-shaped shell 65 adhered to theinner surface of inner portion 64, if desired.

Although not limited thereto, the embodiment shown in FIGURES 4 and 5 isparticularly adapted for use with the mandrel M shown in FIGURE 10 whichexerts axial pressure on a yarn carrier to hold it during winding. Asshown in FIGURES 4 and 5, a yarn carrier 30 is provided with outercylindrical wall 32. Spaced around the inner surface of wall 32 are aplurality of ribs 34 which terminate at the top of the yarn carrier inan inwardly extending annular flange 35. As is shown in FIGURE 5 theribs 34 extend downwardly at an angle toward outer wall 32 from flange35 to a point 37 and form the abutment 36. Each of the ribs 34 includesan elongated medial portion 38 extending from the point 37 in parallelrelation to wall 32 terminating at a point 40. A bevelled portion 42 ofeach rib 34 extends outwardly from point 40 to accommodate the mandrel.The medial portion 38 of each rib 34 is so cut away to eliminateunnecessary material, thus making a lighter product which is easier tomanufacture.

Although not limited thereto, the embodiment shown in FIGURES 6 and 7 isalso particularly adapted for use with mandrel M shown in FIGURE 10which exerts axial pressure on a yarn carrier to hold it during winding.

The carrier 50 of FIGURES 6 and 7 is similar to carrier 30 of FIGURES 4and 5 in that it does not have a smooth inner passageway, however, it isformed with a longitudinal extension 58 contiguous with the outer wallprotruding beyond the distal end of the mandrel and preventing anydamage that might be done by the exposed end of the mandrel. Carrier 50also has an outer wall portion 52 and inner angularly tapered ribs 54which are tapered from the bottom or proximal end of the carrierinwardly at an angle of approximately two degrees (or a lesser degreethan the mandrel taper) throughout the length of the rib to the distalend of the carrier terminating an inwardly extending annular flange 56.Flange 56 is spaced inwardly from the outer or distal end of the yarncarrier 50 to form the longitudinal extension 58 to protect the yarnfrom the damage that might be done by the exposed portion of the mandrelM or M. The yarn carrier only engages the surface of the mandrel at theinner edge 57 of flange 56 and at the bottom or proximal end or base 59of ribs 54 for the same purposes as ribs 34 of yarn carrier 30.

From the foregoing description and the accompanying drawing, it will beseen that the inventive concept can be embodied in numerous specificconstructions. For example, a single tapered mandrel can be used with ayarn carrier having an outer surface of any desired shape and still bewithin the spirit of the invention, which is intended to be limited inscope only according to the claims.

In the drawings and specifications, there have been set forth apreferred embodiment of the invention, and although specific terms areemployed, they are used in a descriptive sense only and not for purposesof limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. A yarn carrier adapted for use on a tapered man drel of a windingmachine, said yarn carrier comprising a tubular structure including agenerally tapered inner wall of a smaller diameter at one end than atthe other, the inner wall being of such configuration that whenassembled onto said tapered mandrel, the inner surface of said wallengages the tapered mandrel at least at each end of said carrier, saidyarn carrier further comprising a generally cylindrical outer wallconnected to said tapered inner wall and a plurality of peripherallyspaced longitudinal ribs extending between said outer and said innerwall, said ribs extending radially inwardly a greater distance at saidone end of said carrier than at the other end.

2. A yarn carrier according to claim 1 and further including a radiallyinwardly extending, annular flange adjacent said one end, said ribsextending between the flange and the other end, the inner surface ofsaid ribs lying outwardly of an imaginary straight line between theinnermost portion of said flange and the inner surface of said otherend.

3. A yarn carrier according to claim 2 wherein said outer wall furtherincludes a longitudinal extension contiguous with said outer wall andprotruding beyond the junction of said inwardly extending annular flangeand said outer wall, whereby yarn is protected from the end of themandrel, when the yarn carrier is mounted thereon.

4. A yarn carrier according to claim 1 wherein said inner wall is spacedradially inwardly from said outer wall at one end of the yarn carrier,said inner wall extending longitudinally of said yarn carrier inconverging relationship with said outer wall to a point where said outerwall and said inner Wall merge and form a thickened base portion at theother end.

5. A yarn carrier according to claim 4 wherein a plurality ofdepressions are formed in the inner surface of the base portion andextend longitudinally along a portion of the inner surface of the baseportion.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 50,116 9/1865 Goulding 242-46.2l152,219 6/1874 Draper 24246.21 180,145 7/ 1876 Mayor 24246.21 188,7843/1877 Draper 24246.2l 2,195,240 3/1940 Chaplin et a1. 242-118322,236,178 3/1941 Kennedy 242-4621 FOREIGN PATENTS 14,966 1902 GreatBritain. 23,874 1892 Great Britain.

STANLEY N. GILREATH, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R.

